Replacement
by flyingwargle
Summary: It was just another day for Nekoma. Yes, another day where all the volleyball players had been injured, Kuroo has a broken arm, and Yaku is in the hospital. Shibayama, being the other libero, is now Nekoma's regular libero but filling Yaku's footsteps is going to be more than a tough challenge, especially since his teammates' injuries are his fault.
1. The First Day

Another school day had come to an end at Nekoma High School, dictated by the sound of the bell. As teachers walked out of their classrooms, the students lingered behind to gossip with their friends or began their classroom duties with their classmates. Various first-years ran through the halls to arrive at club early, slowing and apologizing when a third-year stopped them. Outside, the sky was clear and cloudless, the sun shining brightly as if it was a spotlight, presenting Nekoma as the main act. It was just another day at school as it always had been.

"Hey, Yuki!" Inuoka caught up to Shibayama on his way to the clubroom. His uniform was already messy, his tie loosened from its knot. "How's it going? I'm going to try jump serves today. Do you want to help me with that?"

Shibayama turned to acknowledge his friend and fellow first-year, noticing the eager glimmer in his eyes. He nodded and looked down to avoid focusing on the badge covering Inuoka's cheek. "Sure. I'm not really good with serves though so I might not be able to help…"

"That's okay! You're a libero but that doesn't mean you don't know what a good serve is and what isn't!" Inuoka laughed cheerfully. He flung open the door to the clubroom, greeting the second-years inside. "Afternoon, Yamamoto-san! Fukunaga-san!"

"Afternoon!" Yamamoto greeted back. Fukunaga's greeting was lost in the ace's louder voice. "Hurry up and get ready or else Kuroo-san is going to get mad. We'll go first!"

"We'll be there soon," Inuoka reassured them as they headed out. Shibayama noticed the slight limp in Yamamoto's gait and recalled how energetic he was. He hadn't been able to participate in practice all of last week because of an ankle injury but now it seemed like he was ready to get back to spiking.

"Let's get some onigiri after practice," Inuoka said, glancing at Shibayama as he finished changing into his shorts and T-shirt. He folded his uniform and stacked them in a neat pile to place inside his bag. "I bet Kuroo-san and Yamamoto-san would come with us if we ask them."

"Oh. Okay." Shibayama nodded. "That's a good idea. Maybe we can ask everyone else too."

"Sure! I bet they'd come. It's been a while since the whole team went to get snacks after practice." Inuoka smiled. He rummaged through his backpack to take out a new bandage. "Do you mind helping me with this?"

"No, not at all…" Shibayama took it from him. He looked away when Inuoka gingerly peeled off the old bandage, revealing a cut on his cheek. Fortunately, it had been a shallow cut but still inflicted pain every now and then. It was just another injury alongside with the others littering his body.

He positioned the bandage over the cut and carefully lowered it in place. Inuoka ran a finger over it to secure it. "Thanks! Let's get going!" he picked up his court shoes and flew out of the clubroom. With a small smile to himself, Shibayama collected his knee pads and court shoes before following.

Inside the gym, the second-years were already practicing their serves. Kai was off to the side securing the net, Coach Naoi on the other side doing the same thing. Kenma was rolling a bin of volleyballs toward the second-years with a yawn. Kuroo was speaking with Coach Nekomata by the equipment room and Lev was nowhere in sight. It was possible he was late because of a test before practice but his excuses usually didn't matter since he was always late. It looked like just another day at practice.

"Here goes!" Inuoka tossed his ball high above him and took a few running steps. He jumped and promptly fell back down when the ball bounced off of his head. "Ouch! Not bad, right?" he called out to Shibayama.

He wasn't sure how to respond to that other than the usual sayings. He settled with, "That was a good throw. Maybe wait a bit before running?"

"Okay!" Inuoka picked up another ball from the bin and marched toward the wall to start again.

"Incoming, Shibayama!" at the sound of his name, he turned and raised his arms to receive Yamamoto's serve. He winced when it hit an old bruise. "You okay?" Yamamoto called out.

"I'm fine," Shibayama replied. He went on to receiving Fukunaga's serve, followed by Kenma's. Kai joined them shortly, stopping to give advice to Inuoka for his jump serve rather than serving himself. Lev arrived just in time for Kuroo to call them to gather up, which spared him from Kuroo's wrath for a few more minutes.

Nekomata surveyed the semi-circle his players formed. Kuroo stood straight, doing his best to appear as a captain despite his right arm being in a sling. Kai stood beside him, closed cuts and bruises littering his arms and legs. Fukunaga had similar healing injuries as well. Yamamoto stood slightly unevenly to take some of his weight off of his injured ankle but his expression was as fierce as always. Inuoka had a bandage on his cheek, his arms and legs also littered with cuts and bandages. Kenma's eyes were looking downward, his hair falling over the bandage on his head. Lev and Shibayama didn't have any visible marks or bandages but their expressions were tired and haggard. _All_ of their expressions were tired and haggard.

"This might not want you wanted to hear but we'll be having a practice match against Fukurodani two days from now," Nekomata said. "Tomorrow's practice will be shorter so you can rest longer for it. Today, take things slow and don't injure yourselves farther."

"Coach, a practice match right now isn't the best idea," Kai pointed out. "We barely have enough players for a full team and Kenma isn't well enough to endure an entire set, let alone two or three."

Nekomata's eyes danced over to Kenma. "What do you say to that, Kenma? Will you be able to play two days from now?"

"Maybe," he mumbled. He had suffered a harsh blow to his head and although he was recovering quickly, he still had dizzy spells here and then. "I hope so."

"Now is precisely a good time to have a practice match. It's been two weeks since the accident and almost all of your injuries have healed. If you can endure your pain now, you can win any match in the future. Make sure you help each other and take your time. Don't force yourself to do more if you can't go on."

"Right," his players responded in unison. Nekomata nodded at Naoi to carry on with practice and the coach started directing them to line up for spiking practice. Kuroo, having a broken arm, sat down beside Nekomata to observe the team.

"Don't feel bad," the elderly coach told him. "You have three more weeks until your cast comes off. From then until the beginning of the spring tournament, you'll have plenty of time to strengthen it."

"I'm not worried about that." Kuroo frowned. "I'm more worried about Shibayama."

"Is that so?" Nekomata turned to call out to him. "Shibayama! Can you come here for a second?"

For a brief moment, everyone stopped, including Kenma, who was ready to toss a ball but caught it instead. Nekomata very rarely called for any of them during practice. It only happened when he was angry at one of them but even then, Naoi would coach them since that was his role.

Shibayama stiffly marched toward him, his back straight stiff, arms dangling by his side. "Y-yes, Coach?" he squeaked. Kuroo stifled a laugh and stood up to lend Naoi a hand (or arm) in cleaning up the stray balls.

"This match will be your first official one in a while isn't it?" Nekomata remarked. Shibayama nodded stiffly. "Do your best. Your receives are improving significantly."

"T…T-thank you very much!" Shibayama bowed, touched by his coach's praise. Although everyone on the team were excellent at receives, a libero had to be even better than that. His expectations for receives were higher than everyone else's. "I-I'll do my best!"

"I know you will. You're only a first-year but your skill level is above the expected level. You'll make Yaku proud."

The young libero immediately deflated at his senpai's name. Yaku was one of the best liberoes Nekoma had ever had. Following his footsteps and becoming a good libero after him was a daunting challenge. "I know I'll never be half the libero Yaku-san is," he murmured, "but I'll do my best."

"Shibayama!" Kuroo called out. "Come help me!"

He glanced at his coach, who gave him a nod forward. He hurried to help his captain, his eyes occasionally darting over to the cast resting in its sling. A stab of guilt attacked him but he pushed it away roughly, picking up the last few balls remaining before the spikers could go through another round. "Shibayama, how about you try receiving?" Naoi asked him. "Lev, you can block. Inuoka will block after you."

"Okay!" Lev ducked under the net to stand on the other side with Shibayama. He raised his arms, ready to block. "Please cover for me, Shibayama!"

The first rotation of spikers successfully thwarted Lev's blocks, which gave Shibayama more practice with block-follow. Kuroo occasionally shouted at Lev to correct his positioning and timing, his tone growing more and more irritated each time.

"Nice save!" Lev said over his shoulder when Shibayama received Kai's spike. The ball sailed over the net though so it wouldn't had given them a chance of attacking, if anyone was. Naoi signaled them to switch and Inuoka swapped places with Lev. "Give me a toss, Kenma-san!"

Kenma gave him a short nod before collapsing onto his knees, an arm cradling his head. Lev dropped his ball and hurried to kneel beside him. "Kenma-san, are you okay?" he asked as the rest of his teammates gathered around him.

"Yeah," Kenma mumbled faintly. "I'm fine. Just dizzy…"

"Help him to the bench," Naoi instructed. "Shibayama, get him some water, please." Fukunaga and Kai supported Kenma on both sides to help him walk over to the bench. Shibayama hurried to grab one of the water bottles sitting on the stage, fetching the first-aid kit when Kuroo asked him to do so.

He handed the water bottle to Kenma, taking a step back to stand beside Inuoka. Kenma took a small sip of water and leaned his head back against the wall with his eyes closed. "Better?" Kuroo asked. "I can get you an ice pack if you need it."

"Take a break," Naoi told him. "If you feel better, you can join us again but don't push yourself." He turned to face the guys. "Back to practice. I can set for now. Kuroo, keep an eye out on him." He hurried back to the court, placing his jacket on the next vacant bench.

"You should've said something earlier," Kuroo said to Kenma. "It wouldn't have been a problem for Coach to set instead."

Kenma mumbled something under his breath. He opened one eye, noticing Shibayama walking away. "Thanks for the water, Shibayama," he said loudly enough for the libero to hear. Shibayama turned, surprised. He nodded and jogged to get back into position again.

Practice resumed. Naoi was able to sync with his players effortlessly and Inuoka was able to block one of Yamamoto's spikes, which made Lev jealous of him. Shibayama dove to receive Fukunaga's spike, missing it by a centimeter. It rolled harmlessly out of bounds as he pushed himself off the floor, letting out a breath. _Yaku-san could've gotten that_ , he thought to himself. As he brushed his T-shirt straight, he remembered what Yaku had told him on his first day of practice.

"Nekoma focuses on connecting, which means receiving. When we were first-years, our receives were awful but Coach Nekomata came back and made all of our practices focus on receiving. When our receives are done well and go to the setter, we can do any attack. The same can be said when the opposite happens – when the opponent attacks and we receive it, the ball is still in play. Even when we can't attack with it, we'd still have another chance if our receives are solid."

Yaku had turned to look at him, a small, timid first-year who had been at Nekoma for only a few days. The gleam in his senpai's eyes was filled with resolve. "If we're known as the kings of receives then that makes you and I the emperor of receives, right?"

Kai's voice snapped him out of his memory. "Shibayama, your elbow is bleeding." Alarmed, he raised his elbow, noticing the skin had been peeled off, probably from when he had dove for the ball. It was only now he was registering the pain. "You best get a bandage for that."

He nodded, hurrying off the court to head toward Kuroo, who was already searching for a bandage and antiseptic wipe inside the first-aid kid. He sat down and raised his elbow to inspect the damage. It was a small scrape, nothing to worry about. Kai was only overreacting because any small injury could become fatal.

"Here. Help me open this." Kuroo handed him the antiseptic wipe. When the top had been ripped off, he removed the wipe and dabbed it over the scrape. Shibayama winced but the sting faded quickly. "You can put the bandage on yourself."

"Okay. Thank you, Kuroo-san." Shibayama stuck the bandage over the wound. His eyes lingered toward Kuroo's sling again. "Um…will you be able to play in the practice match…?"

"Not for another three weeks." Kuroo shook his head. "That's when the cast comes off but even after that, it'd take a while before I can start blocking again. Coach Nekomata thinks I'd recover in time for the spring tournament but I don't know about that." He raised a shoulder in a shrug. "Lev and Inuoka are improving. You are too, Shibayama. You'll be able to play in the match this time."

Shibayama nodded. It wasn't as if this was his first official match _ever_. It would be his first high school practice match. He had participated in Golden Week and the various training camps but Yaku was the official libero for Nekoma. He was just a first-year.

"You're lucky you weren't injured severely," Kuroo added. "I wouldn't have accepted Bokuto's request if we didn't have a setter or libero but you guys are tough. You can fight through this."

After a short break, practice carried on for another hour and a half before Nekomata called it a day. Kuroo led them in their usual chorus of thank-yous, before working together to put the net and equipment away. Naoi and Nekomata closed the gym after them so they could change and go home.

"Hey, do you guys want to get some onigiri?" Inuoka asked as he swung his jacket on. He was still dressed in his T-shirt and shorts, not wanting to change. The rest of his teammates were changing back into their uniforms.

"I could go for some onigiri," Yamamoto said. Fukunaga nodded in agreement.

"Sorry, Inuoka, but I have something to do tonight," Kai said apologetically. "Maybe next time."

Kuroo swung his bag over his shoulder, his expression thoughtful. "Visiting hours at the hospital are still on so why don't we go to the hospital and visit Yaku?"

"That's a good idea!" Lev said excitedly. "We haven't visited Yaku-san altogether in a while. Let's go! We can bring him some of his favorite onigiri too."

Shibayama zipped his bag closed. He shouldered it and turned, looking apologetic. "Sorry, Inuoka," he said apologetically. "I just remembered my mom is waiting for me to come home tonight. I'll have to go another time too."

"You hadn't gone to visit Yaku-san before though," Inuoka pointed out. "Don't you want to see your senpai?"

"I do, it's just…" Shibayama bit his lip nervously. "I'm not…not a big fan of hospitals. That's all. I should really go now. See you tomorrow." He slid the door shut behind him on his way out.

Guilt weighed his every step toward home. The truth was, he couldn't bring himself to see Yaku because of how guilty he felt. _None of this wouldn't have happened if they didn't listen to me. Yamamoto-san was right. We should've listened to him instead because Yaku-san and Kuroo-san would still be playing with us. It's my fault we're not going to win the spring tournament._

"I'm home." He closed the door behind him, slipping his shoes off to put them on the shoe rack. His mother appeared at the doorway holding a knife, a smile on her face.

"Welcome home, Yuki-kun. How was practice? Are you hungry? You're home earlier than usual," she remarked. "Did your coach let you leave early?"

"Practice was fine. A lot of us are still hurting so we didn't do much," Shibayama admitted. "They let us go home to rest. I wanted to…to come straight home instead of buying something with the team."

"I'll get you something to eat then," his mother said. "Haruka is waiting for you to come home so you can play with her. If you have homework though, make sure you do that first."

"Okay. Thanks, Mom." He climbed the stairs to his room, flipping the light switch on. He took his school supplies out to place on his desk and then his volleyball equipment on another table. His younger sister marched in holding the spare volleyball he had that she stole when she started elementary school.

"Onii-chan! Let's play volleyball!" she chirped. He smiled at her and ruffled her hair a bit affectionately.

"How about after I eat?" he said. "I don't have any homework to do so let's play later."

"Okay!" she tossed the volleyball up and down in her hands. "Will you teach me how to receive properly? I want to be a libero just like you!"

Shibayama blinked, unaware of his sister's passion for volleyball. "Are you on the team, Haruka?"

"Yeah! But the teacher teaches everyone how to do things so we don't get to practice receives as much," she grumbled. "That's why I want your help, Onii-chan!"

"I'll help you later," he promised. He stretched his arms over his head, wincing when he straightened his arm with the injured elbow. "Do you like your team?"

"Yeah! Everyone is really nice. A lot of them already play volleyball so I have to do my best too," she said. "I want to play in a real match and save a lot of balls!"

He listened to her ramble on excitedly about volleyball and her team. He watched her, envious of her innocence and freedom. She already had an advantage over the other kids who may just be starting since she had been practicing with him at home. As she got older though, there would be a lot of kids who could be even better than her. She may never get a regular position depending on where she went and how she played in the future.

When he had first applied for Nekoma, he hadn't thought about the volleyball club at all because it was still mediocre in terms of strength. In the back of his mind, he knew he wouldn't be a regular right away because there had to be a regular libero and there was no way he would've been better than him. He was right the moment he saw Yaku perform during that first practice. The third-year was experienced, intelligent, and a player that Nekoma needed. Shibayama knew he would have to earn his place gradually as a regular and train hard to fill the hole the previous libero would leave.

Never had he thought he would get the position like this.

"Onii-chan? Onii-chan, Mom is calling for you." Haruka tugged at his sleeve. He snapped out of his reverie, a surge of guilt sweeping through him. He looked down at her. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Haruka. Sorry. After I eat, let's practice volleyball." He stood up to exit his room, his cheering sister following after him. He turned the light off and closed the door before galloping downstairs to eat.

It had just been another day. Another day without Yaku.

* * *

 **A/N:** Hello! I'm sorry if you were looking forward to the other story I promised to write - Seijoh vs. Dateko - but when I got the idea for this, the words flowed easier than the other story. This'll be my January story and next month, you can definitely expect Seijoh vs. Dateko!

My sister loves with Yaku and Shibayama and she wanted Shibayama to be able to play on the court so my immediate logic was: _injure Yaku, let Shibayama_ _play._ I want to try writing angst so I hope this will be something I can be proud of. (I don't think this would be really angsty. Don't worry so much.) So this story has been inspired by her. Again.

I'm estimating this would take about 4-5 chapters of this size so it won't be take long. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy the angst (I guess?)!

Reviews are always appreciated!

 **Haikyuu! does not belong to me. I am merely a fan.**


	2. The First Practice Match

"Good work today. See you tomorrow." Kuroo waved his teammates goodbye as they filed out of the gym. Yamamoto was yawning with Fukunaga at his side, Lev was stretching his arms over his head, and Inuoka was talking to Kenma excitedly about tomorrow's match, the latter yawning and nodding absently. Shibayama trailed behind them, eyes downcast. "Shibayama! Come here for a second."

The first-year whirled around and marched toward him stiffly. "Y-yes?" he squeaked. He had been jittery all practice. Even playing with his peers hadn't helped him overcome his nerves for tomorrow's match.

"Don't worry so much. You'll be fine. We're counting on you but you know you can't receive every ball. We all have to work together to connect. All right?" Kuroo said. He hoped his tone was soft enough to put him at ease a bit.

Shibayama blinked at him for a moment, unable to formulate a proper response. Kuroo saved him by waving him away. "Rest up tonight. Relax. I'll see you tomorrow."

O-okay. Thank you, Kuroo-san." Shibayama offered a quick bow. "Good night." He turned and sped walked toward the club room, as if he was fleeing. Kuroo shook his head and turned to do a final sweep of the gym before locking up. The coaches would've done that but both of them had unexpected errands to attend to. He didn't mind locking up. It was a captain's duty, after all.

"Kuroo." He glanced over his shoulder, watching Kai approach. A challenge gleamed in his eyes, which was new. "I know you usually tell Yaku or Kenma about your plans but lately, with Kenma as he is and Yaku out of the picture, you've been keeping things to yourself. I'm your vice. If you plan anything, please tell me. For example, I never knew we were going to have a practice match until Coach told us yesterday. I don't remember Bokuto or Akaashi or their coach asking at all."

Kuroo slung his bag over his shoulder and straightened his jacket. He raised his head but avoided Kai's eyes. "You're right. I'm sorry. It just…slipped my mind. Telling you things. I'm too used having you, me, and Yaku around. It won't happen again."

His tone bothered Kai. It was too unlike his usual self. That wasn't to say Kuroo wasn't a nice guy since he was. He just never admitted it outright. "If this does, though, just remember we're not going to have any practice matches until everyone is healed. That includes-"

"This won't _ever_ happen again," Kuroo interrupted tersely. "What happened was…was incredibly bad luck for us. There's nothing we can do about it now."

Kai thought he heard the last few words falter a bit. "Do you blame Shibayama?" he asked softly. Kuroo looked at him, his expression being a mixture of anger and guilt. "No one is to blame, Kuroo. If you look at it, _all_ of us are to blame in some way. We blame Shibayama because it was his suggestion to go inside the temple but our own decision to follow him."

"I don't blame him but a part of me does," Kuroo admitted. "At the end of practice the day before the incident, I heard the coaches talking of how we had a chance of winning this year. They didn't mean just the representative play-offs but the entire thing. The 'Battle at the Garbage Heap' could've happened. I told Sawamura we'd meet again in the Tokyo stadium…except we'd be cheering in the stands for them instead of playing them." He took a breath before continuing. Kai could tell he was holding tears back.

"We practiced connecting. Our plays are perfect. We even won against Fukurodani a few times during the training camp. We could've done it again in an official match, but now…" he trailed off. He made a fist with his good arm. "All that is stopping us are two broken arms and a broken leg. Nekoma is a new team now. They have to relearn everything and there's a little more than a month until the tournament starts. That's why we need this practice match. We need every opportunity to help the team adjust."

The practice match wasn't just an obstacle for the team to overcome with their injuries but for them to become accustomed to the "new" team. Their captain couldn't play and so he couldn't direct them in blocking. Their libero was injured and his replacement was inexperienced and most definitely unable to save every ball. They needed to know that. They needed to learn how to connect all over again.

"There's still a chance." It was Kai's turn to sound determined. "Those first-years will be supported by the second-years and they'll have me on the court to direct them. I know I don't have your expertise in blocking but I'll do the best I can. So long we can connect, we can win."

Kuroo looked at him through one eye. He turned so he was looking at the wall. "I forgot again. They're not completely helpless. They have you. Maybe that's all they need."

"I alone am not enough," Kai replied with a small smile. "One person on the court isn't strong but with six, we are."

"Thanks for the reminder, Kai. I needed that." Kuroo headed toward the door. "Let's get out of here."

Kai turned the lights off and closed the door. Kuroo fished out keys from his pocket and locked it with a satisfying click. As he was about to walk toward the school gates to head home, he added over his shoulder, "This match isn't just for the team. It's for Shibayama, mostly." He didn't say anymore, only walked away. Kai watched him for a second before turning to head to the club room. Some things would never change.

* * *

"Nekoma is coming in fifty-seven minutes! Get this gym cleaned up and set up!" Yukie shouted as she slipped her feet into her court shoes. Lazing around the floor were the Fukurodani guys, all dressed in their jerseys and shorts, a few of them wearing their team jackets. The third-years were playing cards while Akaashi and Onaga were the only ones heading into the equipment room to get the equipment to set up.

"Why fifty-seven minutes?" Bokuto called out over his shoulder. Yukie stomped toward them to watch their card game but it was just a boring round of Big Two. From the looks of it, Bokuto had the largest hand, which meant he was losing. "Why not just say an hour?"

"If I said an hour, you'd think, 'oh, we have plenty of time' but if I say fifty-seven minutes, you'd think, 'oh crap, we only have fifty-seven minutes. We should set up,'" Yukie said, mimicking Bokuto's tone. He tossed his cards onto the floor so he could stand and tower over her.

"I don't sound like that!" he exclaimed. "Do I?" he glanced over his shoulder at his teammates but they were ignoring him by cleaning the cards up and standing to help their underclassmen with setting up. "Akaashi, do I sound like that?"

Akaashi inserted the pole into its slot in the floor. He tried to keep his tone neutral as he answered, "Not all the time." Yukie burst out laughing and Bokuto simply looked confused.

"Why are we even having a practice match _now_?" Komi asked loudly as he helped Konoha unravel the net. "Isn't Nekoma…you know…sort of down for the count? Their captain and libero are injured and the rest of them were in bad shape. It's kind of weird."

Washio rolled the scoreboard out. "Technically, they still have enough players to participate," he pointed out. "Their captain only broke an arm so he could get back into it before the tournament starts but their regular libero is a different story."

"What did the news say?" Konoha said, blinking thoughtfully. "There weren't any fatalities but lots of injuries. I think someone broke an arm and a leg. Was it their libero?"

"Don't gossip," Akaashi told them as he walked by. "If they want a practice match, they can have one. The circumstances surrounding them aren't any of our concern."

"Bokuto didn't give Kuroo much time to prepare them, did he?" Konoha said to Komi. "We just had our training camp. It's pretty sudden, honestly."

"I know, right? But I don't mind. We get more practice. They know we'll never go easy on them." Komi shrugged. "I overheard Washio saying it was Kuroo who wanted the match but asked Bokuto to make it look like he wanted it instead of the other way around."

"Why would Kuroo do that?"

Komi shrugged again. He asked, "You think it'll happen again?"

"What?"

"An earthquake."

"The news say that quake two weeks ago was uncalled for. No one was expecting it so I don't think it'll happen again any time soon. Good thing I was at home when it happened. Nekoma was just unlucky, being in a temple that collapsed during the quake." Konoha whirled around when Yukie shouted for him to help her. "Coming!" he ran toward her, leaving Komi to finish securing the net.

Bokuto lingered by the door to watch for Nekoma to arrive. They entered through the opened school gates like a group of cats stalking their prey. Kuroo was at its head, Kai beside him, and the rest of their team behind them. Bokuto shouted for his team to gather up so they could greet each other. It wasn't necessary but whatever Bokuto dictated he usually got it.

Kuroo had his jacket draped over his shoulders, his arm still in his cast. Kai was beside him, arms covered in healing or healed cuts and scrapes. Yamamoto had his usual punkish look on his face, Kenma's eyes avoided the player in front of him, and Fukunaga was carefully scratching his arm. Inuoka looked excited as always and Lev was nonchalant, towering over the rest. Shibayama was shaking but it was slight so no one noticed. He was nervous. This wasn't his first game ever but it would be his first game where he was a starting player.

"Let's have a good game!" the teams bowed to each other. After a moment passed, the tense atmosphere faded and Bokuto swung an arm around Kuroo, leading him into the gym. The rest of the players followed, exchanging their shoes for court shoes.

"Block for me when your cast comes off!" Bokuto was saying to Kuroo. The Nekoma captain tried to laugh but it sounded forced.

"I'd rather not. I don't want it to break again," was his reply. He shook Bokuto off and glanced over at Kenma. "Are you good to go for warm-ups? We can ask Coach Naoi to set for you instead."

"I'll be fine," he answered. "I had some painkillers this morning. I can play." His unusual desire to play would've surprised anyone but right now, his teammates were simply glad they had a setter.

The coaches entered the gym as the warm-up was about to wrap up. Kuroo noticed Yukie was on her own by the scoreboard and walked over to her. "Where's your kouhai?" he asked her in greeting.

"Sick. It's fine, I can do it. That's what managers do," Yukie replied. "Go sit down with your coach or something."

"I need something to do. If I sit there and watch them play, I might randomly jump in and start blocking with one arm." Kuroo noticed the score for Nekoma was at twenty-five. He quickly flipped it so it would be zero.

"Pretty weird timing for a practice match, huh?" she remarked, hoping it would spark a conversation.

"Well, you know Bokuto."

"We all know it wasn't him who wanted this match, Kuroo. How's that arm of yours?"

"Still broken."

"Just a month more until the representative play-offs, right?"

"Thirty-two days, actually."

Yukie let out a sigh. "I'm sorry for what happened."

"So are a lot of people." Kuroo shrugged. Yukie had forgotten how it was like to have a conversation with him. It was like talking to Akaashi but with more sarcasm and less politeness.

Shibayama noticed his captain and Fukurodani's manager arguing about something by the scoreboard. He retrieved the last stray ball on the court and deposited in the bin. Before he could hurry to his team, the Fukurodani libero stopped him. "Shibayama, was it?"

He turned around to face him. Komi was an inch taller than him but it wasn't just height that made him feel like a senpai. He had years of experience compared to him. Yaku would've been a better opponent for him. "Y-yes?" Shibayama stammered.

"Good luck today. Your team is depending on you." Komi gave him a nod before turning to roll the bin into the equipment room. Shibayama watched him for a second until Yamamoto called out to him.

They gathered around Nekomata for a final word of edgewise. He had nothing to offer, other than, with a glance at Kai and Kuroo, "Work together and bring home a victory."

"Right!" the guys chimed. Kuroo stepped away as the team formed a circle, gesturing for Kai to lead them in their usual mantra. His eyes darted toward each player and he extended his right fist, his team following his lead.

"We are the body's blood," he began, "flow smoothly and circulate oxygen so the brain functions normally." As always, eyes darted toward Kenma and he hunched his shoulders slightly when he sensed the attention focused on him. Shibayama felt pressured as well. He had to perform well here. He had to make his upperclassmen proud. He had to fill the footsteps Yaku had left for him.

 _If we're the kings of receives, and if Yaku-san is the emperor of receives, then I must be the slave._

"Let's go!" a chorus of cheers answered Kai. They took their places on the court, eyes occasionally darting toward Kuroo, who was standing by the scoreboard with a smirk on his face. He was proud yet he was hurting. He wanted to play but he couldn't. He could only will for his team to win.

* * *

 **A/N:** This took the longest time for me to write because I couldn't find the best way to approach it. It's still going in the direction I want it to go though, so that's good. I hope you enjoyed it! (The best you can, anyway, through the pain and sadness.)

Three more chapters remain if everything goes according to plan! Thank you for reading!

 **Haikyuu! does not belong to me. I am merely a fan.**


	3. The First Visit

It had been two weeks since the earthquake shook Tokyo. It wasn't planned, wasn't expected, wasn't meant to break anything or injure anyone. The only causality that resulted from it was the collapse of an old temple near the epicenter of the quake, resulting in several injuries: minor head trauma, a broken arm, some scrapes, cuts and bruises, or in Yaku's case, a broken arm and leg.

His arm was fractured and would heal faster than his leg, which had broke when the temple collapsed on them. Either way, no matter how many people reassured him or wished him a swift recovery, it wouldn't be fast enough to be completely able to participate in the tournament with his team. He was finished with volleyball for the year. The most he could do was give advice from the sidelines and sit in the stands when the tournament begins.

Realization settled within him a few days after he had been hospitalized. _I won't be able to play. I_ can't _play no matter what happens. There's just not enough time._ It was a cruel twist of fate that this had happened at the worst possible time. There was no point in getting mad since there was no one to be mad at. There was no one to blame and no one who was at fault. It had happened and this was the consequence.

Still, his mind wandered enough times to make outrageous accusations he would never say aloud. Right now, the only thing he was grateful for was that Nekoma had another libero this year. Shibayama. The team could still participate. They still had a chance at winning.

The morning after the practice match against Fukurodani, Yaku had visitors. He was in bed, left arm casted and lying limply by his side, a book opened on his lap. His right leg was also in a cast and elevated slightly with a dozen or so pillows. They were all different since his teammates each brought one from home. They also brought him his missed work, snacks, and plenty of entertainment to keep him busy throughout the day. Someone brought a volleyball for some bizarre reason but he left it alone in the corner of the room.

"Yaku?" he raised his head at the sound of the door sliding open. "We're coming it." Kai entered and closed the door as Kuroo sauntered in and stopped at the foot of the bed. "Is he here?"

"There wouldn't be any other place for me to go," he replied. He closed his book and placed it on top of the stack at his bedside. "Welcome. Is it just the two of you?"

"I thought they deserve a break. Yesterday's match might've accidentally hurt old injuries." Kuroo shrugged. He was dressed in casual clothes instead of his team jacket for once, his right arm resting in a sling against his chest. In his left hand, he had a takeout bag. "We brought onigiri."

"Thanks. How was it?" Yaku asked, catching the bag when Kuroo tossed it to him. Their casts mirrored each other's but unlike him, he had a broken leg as well. "The practice match?"

"Not bad. Fukurodani won. We'll beat them if we play a match against them in the tournament." Kuroo sat down and Kai took the empty seat beside him. "Everyone played pretty well, considering what happened."

Although he hadn't mentioned any of their teammates, Yaku knew he was being vague for a reason. He asked, "How did Shibayama do?"

Kuroo hesitated, unsure how to answer. He thought back to yesterday afternoon, during the brief meeting they had after the practice match. Fukurodani had won two straight sets, the first score having been twenty-five to twenty-one, and the second set being twenty-seven to twenty-five. Their opponents would never go easy on them but Kuroo had his suspicions.

After the match though, and back in their gym, Shibayama had lowered himself in a bow, startling them all. "I'm so sorry!" he had exclaimed. "There were so many of them I could've saved…especially that last one…! We could've won the set if I was more careful-"

"It's not your fault, Yuki!" Inuoka had tried comforting him. "You helped us score so many points too because of your receives!"

The rest of them added their comments as well. "Your follow-ups were awesome, Shibayama!" Lev had said. Yamamoto, who was nodding in agreement, added, "We wouldn't have scored as many points if you weren't there covering for us." Kenma and Fukunaga merely nodded, unsure what to say.

Kai had stepped toward him to place a hand on his shoulder. "Shibayama, while it _is_ a libero's job to reinforce our defense, it's also important to know you're not responsible for every receive. We're a team. We have to connect together to win."

"Yes, but…I'm a libero. I should be able to save the ball when it counts." The small libero looked dejected. "I'm sorry…it's my fault we didn't win."

"Shibayama." His head snapped up when Kuroo addressed him. His expression was stern. "No one is to blame. If we lose, we lose as a team. Nothing more and nothing less. Okay?" Shibayama didn't respond. To the rest of the team, he said, "Go home and rest up. We'll take a break tomorrow so we'll see you on Monday." After they had left, Kuroo had asked Kai to go visit Yaku with him and that was how they had ended up coming here the next morning.

Kai answered the question when Kuroo remained silent. "He performed excellently. He still feels like he has to save every ball though."

"It's hard for him," Kuroo added. "You're probably the best libero we've ever had and now he has to take your place all of a sudden. There's a lot of pressure for him."

Embarrassment flooded through him for a moment at the praise. He mumbled, "I'm sure Nekoma had better liberoes than me. Anyway…how is he? He never comes to visit. When the rest of you did, he was never there."

"Well, he says he can't handle hospitals but we know why he won't come," Kuroo replied. "He doesn't want you to blame him."

"I don't blame him. I can never blame anyone for something they didn't do. I don't…do _you_ blame him?" Yaku narrowed his eyes at him. It was difficult _not_ to blame Shibayama right off the bat because he was the one who suggested them to visit the temple. If you continued down that train of thought, it was Lev's fault for wanting to go inside in the first place, Inuoka's fault for persuading the rest of them to follow, and their own for going through with it. No one should've been assigned blame all to themselves. Blame was something that was split between others.

"No," Kuroo answered with a shrug. "None of them do." His tone wasn't enough to convince Yaku but neither of them said any more.

Kai quickly broke the tense silence by asking, "When are you coming back to school?"

"Next week. I'm being discharged the day after tomorrow. My mom is taking time off from work to help me but she said I can rely on the team for help during school hours." Yaku added, "I don't trust Kuroo, so please help me, Kai."

"Hey, I might only have one arm but I'm a nice guy," Kuroo objected. Yaku and Kai burst out laughing the instant those words came out of his mouth. He had been saying that since they had first met and now, after three years, it was like an inside joke between them. Yaku was going to miss it. He really was.

Silence fell over them again. It was easy to figure out what each of them were thinking- it was every third-year's dream to make it to nationals and perhaps win. It had been theirs. They had a reliable libero, a scheming middle blocker, and a capable wing spiker. They connected fluidly and without hesitation.

Less than ten seconds was all it took for their futures to change.

"When the doctor comes, I'm going to ask him if I can participate in January." Yaku's voice was filled with resolve, his expression determined. "If we win, we'll have about two months until then. That should be enough time to strengthen my leg and arm up. Our dream can still come true."

"I didn't want to say this, but…Yaku, I think you're better off letting Shibayama play instead," Kai said. He glanced at Kuroo. "The same goes for you, Kuroo. You two can do as much strength training as you can but you won't have enough time to be at your original level. Kuroo will definitely be able to play in January but you, Yaku, you're more likely to get injured again if you rush your recovery." He lowered his head for a second. "I want this as much as you do…a lot of third-years will feel the same way. We all want to win with our friends. Not everyone can achieve this though. We can because we have enough players. We might not have our libero or captain playing on the court but the rest of us will use what you taught us and we'll fight for you until you can fight with us."

He raised his head again, noticing both of the third-years were gaping at him. Yaku's voice shook when he said, "You'll be there with them, Kai. That's all they need."

"Right. How can we forget? Good ol' reliable Kai." Kuroo slapped his shoulder. "We're counting on you out there, vice."

Kai rubbed his shoulder gingerly. "I'll do my best."

After talking for a while longer, they decided to leave. Kai headed out first to use the washroom so Kuroo lingered behind. Yaku was eating his onigiri, eyes trailing up to his friend. "Kuroo? Can you do me a favor?"

"It depends. What?"

"Tell Shibayama what happened isn't his fault. Make sure the rest of the team don't think that either."

Kuroo nodded. He turned, ready to leave, but Yaku called him back once more. "Don't injure yourself any further. Remember what Kai said."

"You remember what he said too. Take care." Kuroo exited the room, intercepting Kai in the hallway. "All right, let's go. Tomorrow's another day of practice."

* * *

The one-day break was supposed to be just that. A break. A day for the team to rest, do their schoolwork, run errands, meet with their friends, or laze around at home. Shibayama had spent the day with his family, going to the market and buying new craft supplies for his younger sister. In the evening, he had played volleyball with her and then, when it was time for bed, he laid awake for a long time, his mind wandering.

Two weeks ago, after Saturday noon practice was over, the team had been fooling around in the clubroom. Lev and Inuoka were planning to spend the next day visiting local landmarks since Lev hadn't had the chance to see any of them. Somehow, the entire team had been involved and Shibayama was promising to meet them at the train station so they could travel together. It was supposed to be a fun day, a time to build better relationships with the team.

In the afternoon, they had found their way close to the outskirts of the city. The only landmark around was an old temple that housed a few sacred artifacts. It was no different from the other temples in the area, only that it was old. Shibayama had suggested to go inside but Yamamoto objected, saying nothing would be interesting inside. In the end, they had gone inside to look around.

That was when the earthquake happened. Shibayama remembered losing his balance, stumbling onto the floor as the ceiling collapsed on top of them. A voice had called out "Watch out!" to someone. There were screams and cries and shouts. Then it stopped. There was silence, a strange lull. Everything was silent as they waited for any aftershocks. There were none.

Shibayama had tried raising his head. He saw the trees swaying, blocking the sun. He tried moving but he felt pinned. His body ached. He summoned his strength and tried to move his foot. He moved the other one, then his fingers, hands, and arms. He still couldn't move but at least it seemed like all his limbs were intact.

"Kuroo-san? Yaku-san? Guys? Are you okay?" Yamamoto had called out. Various voices called out back to him. Shibayama raised his head but it was too difficult to see from where he was. "Respond if you can hear me!"

"I'm okay!" Inuoka shouted. Lev echoed him, followed by Fukunaga and Kai. Shibayama tried shouting out but he couldn't find his voice to do so. "Kuroo-san, Yaku-san, Kenma-san, Yuki, are you okay? Where are you?"

"I'm here!" Shibayama croaked. The rubble started shifting as the other people who were in the temple started rising to help those who were injured. Yamamoto was the one who lifted the slab of wood that trapped him. "Thank you, Yamamoto-san…!"

"Are you hurt anywhere?" his upperclassman asked. Shibayama shook his head, knowing his scrapes and cuts weren't the type of injuries he was talking about. "Good. Help me out, then."

Slowly, accompanied with the other adults and temple members, they uncovered those who had been trapped under the rubble. Kuroo staggered to his feet, his left arm cradling his right arm. "Where's Kenma?" he asked through gritted teeth. "And Yaku?"

"Kenma is over here!" Kai shouted. He was holding the small second-year in his arms, his forehead bleeding and staining his hair. "He was hit on the head. He needs help right away."

"There's another boy over here too," one of the temple staff called out. Two of them were approaching Yaku, the third-year still sprawled on the ground. He groaned when they tried moving him.

Help arrived a few minutes later and the team and everyone else were taken to the hospital. Shibayama was lucky to have only received a few scrapes and bruises and a shallow cut on his arm. He had met Kai, Fukunaga, and Lev in the lobby, realizing they were the only ones who had been fortunate enough to have light injuries. The rest of their team weren't as lucky.

Inuoka had the most cuts because of the way he had fallen when the quake hit. Yamamoto had twisted his ankle and it had worsened since he was helping with clearing the rubble instead of tending to it. Kuroo's arm had broken and Kenma had a head injury, which seemed to be even worse but Yaku had taken the worse blow of all: a broken arm and leg.

For days following the incident, news had spread within their school quickly. Their coaches disallowed them to practice so they could heal and during those days, they had visited Yaku when they were allowed, or helped each other when they needed it. Kenma and Kuroo needed their help the most. A week after it had passed, practice had resumed and their coaches gradually extended them to their usual length. Even then, not all of them could play as well as before.

That had made Shibayama feel guilty. Lev would be practicing his serves and he would receive them while half of his team sat on the bench, watching. At the beginning, Yamamoto, Kenma, and Kuroo were the ones on the bench, and then it was their setter and captain, and then it was their captain with the occasional break for their setter.

What made him feel guiltiest of all was this was his fault. If they had listened to Yamamoto instead, if they had never took the wrong turn in the road, if they had never gone out that day-

"Yuki?" he snapped out from his thoughts at Inuoka's voice. They were filling up water bottles for their team outside since they didn't have a manager. "Are you okay? You drifted off there for a bit."

"Oh…I'm okay. Thanks." Shibayama glanced at him and gave him a nod. The cut on Inuoka's cheek was starting to fade into a scar now but it was a visible reminder for everyone about the incident.

Practice in the afternoon focused on receives and perfecting the flying fall. The latter was easy as they had performed the penalty during training camp enough times. The former was challenging but rewarding in the end. Shibayama remembered how he missed the last ball during Fukurodani's match point in the second set. He still needed to improve. He could do better.

"Gather up!" Kuroo shouted for them as practice came to a close. His teammates left what they were doing and crowded around their coaches.

Nekomata stood up as he announced, "Next week, I invited Karasuno to come train with us over the weekend. Their tournament starts before ours so they'll need as much training as possible. Keep practicing and keep perfecting your receives. Good work today."

"Thank you very much!" his team chimed. Their coaches took their leave so they could put the equipment away and go home.

"Inuoka." The first-year turned around at the sound of his name. Shibayama was holding a volleyball in one hand, his expression determined. "Can you help me with receiving?"

"Huh? Now? It's time to go home, Yuki," Inuoka pointed out. "If you want to practice, we can do that tomorrow-"

"Please! I need more practice!" Shibayama bowed his head. "Please help me, Inuoka."

Inuoka scratched the back of his head awkwardly. The rest of their team had left to change but he knew Kuroo would return to lock up. "Okay," he said reluctantly. "Just for a bit."

They stood along the width of the court. Inuoka shed his jacket and served the ball. Shibayama received it and Inuoka watched it fly toward him. Before he could stop himself, he was spiking the ball downward and Shibayama received every one. Neither of spoke, the only sound reverberating throughout the gym being the ball flying back and forth.

"Hey! What are you two still doing here?" Kuroo started Inuoka, making him hit the ball at an awkward angle. Shibayama still dove for it but he missed by a centimeter. "Go home! If you want to practice, do that tomorrow!"

"We will, Kuroo-san!" Inuoka replied. He offered a hand to his friend. "Come on, let's go."

Shibayama clambered to his feet but didn't move. "Let's go, Yuki," Inuoka urged him. "Kuroo-san is going to get mad if we don't leave."

"But-" Shibayama tried protesting.

"Go home. Don't strain yourselves," Kuroo said, approaching them. Kai watched from the doorway. "You don't need more practice until you're completely fit. Got it?"

"But I _am_ fit. I was never injured badly in the first place. Not like Kenma-san or you, or…or Yaku-san. I should be the one who's in the hospital," he said bitterly. "And because of me, we're not going to make it to Nationals and battle Karasuno…the 'Battle at the Garbage Heap' isn't going to happen…!"

"Yuki, don't say stuff like that!" Inuoka tried interrupting him but he swept on.

"It was my fault! All my fault! I don't deserve to be on the court. I shouldn't be Yaku-san's replacement because I was the one who got him hurt like that…and everyone else too…I just…wanted to play for my team." His voice became quiet. He was on the verge of tears. "I want to play for Nekoma…but not like this…"

Kai started walking toward them but he froze when Kuroo spoke aloud. "It wasn't your fault. None of it was. Don't think that."

"It is, isn't it?" Shibayama shouted. "Because of me, everyone was hurt. Because of me, you broke your arm and Kenma-san hurt his head and Yaku-san is in the hospital. Because of me, we lost to Fukurodani. Because of me, we won't make it to Nationals!"

No one spoke for a few seconds. Kai feared Kuroo would snap and attack Shibayama despite his broken arm or Inuoka would do something. Instead, Kuroo let out a breath. It echoed ominously around them, "Inuoka. Tomorrow, take Shibayama to the hospital. Go visit Yaku. Listen," he said loudly when the first-years opened their mouths to object. "No one blames you, Shibayama. _No one._ It sucks that we were caught in it but what else can we do? Move past it. Get on with it. Recover and keep going. Did anyone blame you, Shibayama? Does it look like anyone will? None of us think that. We're just glad you're safe and everyone else is safe because being safe is better than being dead."

Shibayama flinched at the word. Kai said warningly, "Kuroo, don't-"

"My point is, you're not Yaku. We're all our own person. Don't try comparing yourself to him because there's too much of a gap in between you two. Don't think about how you can please your senpai but think about how you can help your team." Kuroo turned around and stalked toward the door. "Go visit Yaku tomorrow. He'll be sent home after tomorrow. Go to him and say what you want to say. Don't come back into this gym until you do."

Kai was murmuring to Kuroo as they headed for the ball. Inuoka pulled his jacket back on, eyes focused on Shibayama. The small libero did his best to stop his tears from falling but he couldn't stop them. The reason he couldn't bring himself to go see Yaku wasn't because he was scared of hospitals but because he was afraid. He felt guilt stab him every time he practiced with his team. If he couldn't bear it then, how could he bear visiting his senpai?

Inuoka started dragging him out of the gym. Kuroo turned the lights off and locked the doors, leaving the lone volleyball on the court to be swallowed in darkness.

* * *

 **A/N:** Angst is such a unique genre because there are so many ways to tackle it. At least, that's how I feel about it. I hope you enjoyed it!

Two more chapters to go! _Replacement_ should be finished by the end of the month. Thank you for reading!

 **Haikyuu! does not belong to me. I am merely a fan.**


	4. The First Step

If it weren't for Kuroo banning him from coming to the gym, Shibayama wouldn't have gone to the hospital. Although, if he had gone straight home instead, he would feel incredibly guilty about it but he knew he would make up excuses not to go if he did. He would loiter outside until someone called the police or asked him to leave. Staying at school wasn't an option either. He knew he had to see Yaku, knew he had to talk to him. He just didn't have enough confidence to do so.

Inuoka flew into his classroom after school was over. "Yuki! Let's go!" he shouted. Shibayama ducked his head and gave apologetic looks to his classmates when they shot looks of annoyance at him. He picked up his bag and reluctantly headed out with Inuoka.

"Um…where are we going…?" Shibayama asked as Inuoka dragged him down the stairs.

"To the hospital. Kuroo-san told me not to come to practice if I don't take you there personally," Inuoka answered. He never looked back at him, just kept stalking forward. "This is really important, Yuki. You have to talk to Yaku-san so you can be happy again. After three weeks, you're still sad. You were always so happy before but now, you never smile."

"But don't you…" Shibayama trailed off. He shook Inuoka's hand off from his wrist and took a step back. "Don't you blame me? For what happened? Because of me, we're not going to go to Nationals. The third-years' dream won't come true because of me…"

"No one blames you, Yuki. Yamamoto-san doesn't. Kenma-san doesn't. Kuroo-san doesn't. _I_ don't. If all of us don't then Yaku-san won't either. But you won't know until you ask him, right? So, let's go. To the hospital." Inuoka nodded at him. Shibayama nodded back and they continued down the stairs to head to the shoe lockers.

The hospital was two train stops away from the high school. When they entered, the lobby was buzzing with activity, from patients chatting with nurses or visitors, to doctors and nurses hurrying to and fro their destinations. Inuoka led the way to the elevator, riding it up to the fifth floor. He headed down the hallway toward Yaku's hospital room, walking slowly so he wouldn't make a ruckus. Behind him, Shibayama was starting to panic. What was going to happen? How would Yaku react? Can he actually talk to his senpai face-to-face after avoiding him for three weeks?

"Here we are." Inuoka stopped in front of a closed door. Yaku's name was written on the small whiteboard hanging beneath the room number. He nudged Shibayama forward. "Go on. Knock on the door and go inside."

Shibayama stared at the characters in Yaku's name, repeating them in his mind over and over. His heart was racing and he felt overwhelmed, nervous, and anxious. He resisted the urge to turn and run down the way they had come from, despite knowing Inuoka would catch him eventually. Besides, he was still banned from club activities until he saw his senpai…

"Just go in, Yuki! Open the door and tell Yaku-san what you want to say to him!" Inuoka slid the door open for him. He called out, "Excuse me! It's Inuoka and Shibayama! We're coming in, Yaku-san!"

"Inuoka!" Shibayama hissed. "What if Yaku-san is sleeping? What if this isn't his room? What if he went home already? C-come on, let's go back…"

Inuoka pulled him inside until they were standing at the foot of Yaku's bed. Their senpai watched them enter, looking bewildered at first, but then smiling in greeting at his underclassmen. "Good afternoon, Yaku-san!" Inuoka chirped. "We're here to visit you!"

"Thank you for coming, Inuoka." Yaku turned to face Shibayama but the first-year merely ducked his head to avoid eye contact. "Welcome, Shibayama. Thank you for coming." He didn't say anything in response.

"Where did all of your stuff go, Yaku-san?" Inuoka asked, noticing how empty the room was. Before, every nook and cranny was occupied with books, food, or entertainment. All that remained now was a book and his phone resting on top of it and a brown takeout bag beside it.

"My mom brought everything home since I'm being discharged tomorrow," he answered. His eyes were still focused on Shibayama. "I'm coming back to school next week too."

"Really? That's great! We'll help you out however we can," Inuoka said. He nudged Shibayama. "Say something, Yuki! Don't just stand there."

Shibayama's head snapped up to face his senpai. "Yaku-san," he blurted. "I…um…I…"

He trailed off, unable to continue his sentence. He looked away again, guilt sweeping through him as he scolded himself for being unable to say something so simple. _I'm sorry._ The words were simple yet carried so much meaning. He wanted to put meaning behind those words but if he could never say them aloud, it was just an unspoken apology.

Yaku caught Inuoka's eye. He gave him a small nod, indicating he should leave. Inuoka slipped around Shibayama and headed out, closing the door behind him. Silence hung over them as Yaku waited for him to speak the unspoken but Shibayama remained standing, his eyes focusing on his shoes than anything else.

 _This isn't going to work,_ Yaku thought. He said, "Shibayama, can you call for a nurse?" his kouhai raised his head when he added, "I haven't been outside all week."

"Y-yes! Okay!" Shibayama turned and bolted out of the room, leaving the door half open in his wake. Yaku wondered briefly if he was never going to come back.

Fortunately, he did, along with a nurse, who helped him into a wheelchair. Shibayama pushed him down the hallway to the elevator, riding it down in silence. He followed the signs to head out into the courtyard. Other patients and nurses and visitors milled around on the lawn, engaged in their own conversations while Yaku and Shibayama remained wreathed in silence. A cool breeze stirred stray leaves, making them dance in the air. A red leaf drifted down from above and landed on Yaku's lap. He picked it up and examined it, then looked up from where it had come from. Autumn was coming. The start of the tournament was approaching. He would be there for when it happened but he could only be a spectator, not a player.

"You can stop here." They arrived at a bench in the middle of the walkway. Yaku handed him the takeout bag his mom had left him earlier during the day. "Have an onigiri," he said. "You must be hungry after school."

"Oh…t-thank you, Yaku-san…" Shibayama accepted it graciously, taking the one that looked smaller. He took the other one out to hand to Yaku, which he took with his serviceable arm. He took a bite into it and prompted Shibayama to do the same.

Neither of them spoke while they ate. Yaku finished his first while Shibayama nibbled on his hesitantly, as if he could delay the inevitable for as long as he could. Yaku asked, "Did Kuroo really ban you from going to practice so you would have no choice but to come? Did he ask Inuoka to take you?"

Shibayama couldn't find the words to speak so he simply nodded. Kuroo wasn't lying in his text, then. It seemed like something he would do and since Shibayama respected his upperclassmen, he had no choice but to obey. "I'm glad you're here. You'd might not ever come otherwise."

His kouhai shook his head in agreement, still refusing to look at him. Yaku fixed his gaze on a tree in the distance. "Kuroo told me about the practice match. He said you did well for your first match as a regular."

Silence answered him. Yaku tried again with, "How have the practices been? Kuroo and Kai told me how you've been improving over the year. What do you think, personally?"

There was no response. Yaku let out a breath and turned to face his kouhai. "Shibayama. Please look at me." Slowly, Shibayama obeyed, his dark eyes gleaming with unshed tears. "What is it that you want to tell me?"

"I…I'm sorry." His voice was low and quiet. "It was…my fault…that you were injured so badly. Because of me…I'm going to bring the team down because my receives aren't good enough…if we don't make it to nationals…it's because of me. Yaku-san, I…I'm really sorry…about what happened…"

Tears streamed down his cheeks and stained the walkway beneath him. Yaku remained silent, letting him cry freely. His shoulders shook with sobs, his voice wavering as he released the emotions he had been keeping bottled for so long. "I'm sorry…I'm really sorry…it was my fault…I don't want to replace you, Yaku-san. I just…I just wanted to play for Nekoma…"

Yaku reached forward to place a comforting hand on Shibayama's shoulder. "Don't feel sorry," he said softly. "It wasn't your fault. It was no one's fault. No one blames you, Shibayama, because what happened couldn't be stopped. Even if we didn't go inside…even if we didn't spend the day together at all, there would've been a chance for one of us to have been injured during the quake. It might've been possible for one of us to be injured from something else. Don't think we're not strong enough to win. It isn't over until it is. Everyone has healed and moved on. You need to do that too, Shibayama."

"I can't," Shibayama said forlornly. "I'm not good enough…I won't ever be as good as you, Yaku-san. I'm going to bring the team down, and…and…"

"Shibayama, stop thinking about replacing me or trying to be as good as me. I have two more years' worth of experience than you. You still have a long way to go and a lot to learn." Yaku have him a small, reassuring smile. "All of us have our own playing style, even a libero. There'll be plays where you can save the ball and they'll be plays when you can't, no matter how hard you try. No libero can save every ball. Our job is to support our team and help them score by connecting the ball to them. That's what makes us unique."

He lowered his arm and fixed his gaze on him. "Do you remember what I said? Nekoma is known for their receives, that our team is known as the kings of receives. You're a king now, Shibayama, but when you reach your third year, you'll be the emperor. You're not replacing me. You're a libero and the team needs a libero on the court. You have to be there for them. It's as simple as that."

Shibayama's sobs and tears gradually ceased. _Was_ it as simple as that? He was a libero and his team needed him. They had just enough players to play in the tournament but without him, they wouldn't be able to participate. "Yaku-san…" his voice was caught in his throat. He tried again. "I'll…do my best."

Yaku smiled, relieved. "Good. The team needs you more than ever, Shibayama. They'll support you the best they can but if they're in a pinch, you'll be the one to get them out of it because that is what a libero does." He suppressed a shiver when a strong breeze whisked by. "Thank you for coming. I'm glad…we were able to talk like this."

Shibayama opened his mouth to speak but Yaku cut him off. "You should go back to school. You'll need as much time to practice from now until the start of the tournament," he said. "I'll see you again in school. I'll stop by during practices too to help you if you need it. We'll work together."

"Right." Shibayama stood up. "I'll take you back to your room-"

"No, it's okay. I'll ask a nurse to help me. You can go first. I'll be fine." Yaku smiled at him. "I'll see you in school, Shibayama."

He shouldered his bag hesitantly. He didn't want to leave his senpai alone but if he had insisted, then he had no choice but to obey. "Okay. Thank you…Yaku-san. When you come back, I'll help you in any way I can. Please let me know and I'll do whatever you ask."

"Thank you. I'll see you in school." Yaku gave him a small wave as Shibayama turned to walk away. He disappeared into the distance, never once looking back, although Yaku wasn't expecting him to. He leaned back into his wheelchair, eyes turned upward as he watched a pair of crows fly by. The _Battle at the Garbage Heap_ was going to happen without him but he didn't feel remorse. He was going to be there and he was going to watch his team emerge victorious.

A tear rolled down his cheek. _Thank you, Shibayama._

* * *

 _Three and a half weeks later:_

"Wow! There's so many people!" Hinata exclaimed. He ran toward the railing to admire the various team banners hanging from them and the teams gathered on the courts, warming up or practicing on the court. There was still time left before the first matches began for the day. "Is this bigger than the Sendai City Gym?"

Kageyama gave him an unhelpful answer as well as his usual "dumbass" at the end. Sugawara slipped passed them, eyes scanning the crowd for the person who had invited him out here in the first place. He started walking toward them. "Yaku!"

Yaku raised his head at the sound of his name. He waved at Sugawara as he and his teammates approached. "Glad you could make it, Suga-kun," he said in greeting. He gestured at Hinata and Kageyama standing against the railing, either arguing or talking enthusiastically. "Is anyone else with you?"

"Kozume told Hinata that your first match is today so he wanted to come. Kageyama overheard us planning our trip and wanted to join us too. The rest of them are still resting after the match." Sugawara sat down beside him. "Is Nekoma's match first? And Fukurodani?"

"Nekoma is playing on the middle court." Yaku pointed at his teammates huddled at their end of the court. "Fukurodani will be playing in the afternoon. That's why their cheering squad is quiet right now." He gestured at the group gathered behind the Fukurodani banner across from them.

"Is Kuroo a starting player for this match?"

"No. If we need him, though, he'll be substituted in with Inuoka. Our coach is hoping that won't happen since his arm is still delicate." Yaku's own cast was off too but it wasn't strong enough to use crutches so he had to use a wheelchair for a while longer.

Hinata and Kageyama came to them at Sugawara's voice. They greeted Yaku and sat down in the empty seats behind them. Yaku checked the time on his phone. Five more minutes remained until the start of the match.

Shibayama was quivering with excitement and nerves. He almost dropped the water bottle Inuoka handed to him, earning him a concerned look from his friend. "Are you okay?" he asked. Noticing his shakiness, Inuoka hit his shoulder lightly. "Don't be so nervous. Once you get on the court, it'd feel like we're practicing in the gym. Just do what you always do! You'll be fine!"

"Well said." Kai gave him an encouraging nod. "You'll be fine, Shibayama. You'll find your rhythm quickly and we'll be there to support you until you do."

"R-right!" Shibayama responded. Kuroo returned from shaking hands with the other team's captain and swept his gaze over each of them.

The referee blew his whistle for the teams to line up and greet each other. "Let's have a good game!" the players shook hands with one another and hurried back to their side for the last huddle before the match officially began. Kuroo addressed his team.

"This is our first match of the day. We're going to win and get to nationals. Karasuno already beat Shiratorizawa so now it's our turn to get there," he said. "Let's work together and win this."

"Right!" his teammates shouted in unison. Kuroo glanced at Nekomata but their coach had nothing else to add. They gathered around in a circle, fists raised.

"We're like the blood in our veins." Kuroo looked at each of them. "We must flow without stopping. Keep the oxygen moving so that the brain can function normally."

The players lined up on the court in their starting positions. Shibayama stood at the edge of the court, where he would take Inuoka's place since he was in the back row first. Lev, Kai, and Fukunaga were at the front and Kenma, Yamamoto, and Inuoka were in the back.

He raised his head, locating Yaku sitting behind their team banner. He recognized Hinata sitting behind him and his teammates too. They must've came to cheer for them. The whistle blew, indicating the start of the match.

"Nice serve, Yamamoto!" Yamamoto served and their opponents received it. Shibayama watched the ball being set toward the left, Lev and Kai jumping to block it. _The ball is coming_ , Shibayama thought. _The ball is coming…_

Lev and Kai jumped for a block but they weren't fast enough and their block was thwarted. Shibayama dove instinctively and the ball bounced off of his arm. "Cover!" he called out. Kenma set it underhand for Kai, who spiked it, earning them a point.

"Nice save, Shibayama!" Lev praised him. Yamamoto echoed his words, Kenma giving him a nod of encouragement. Shibayama smiled sheepishly.

"Thanks…um, nice kill, Kai-san," he said. Kai smiled and gave him a thumbs-up.

"Let's keep the momentum going," he declared. "We're scoring the next one too!"

"Right!" as they hurried back to their positions, Shibayama glanced toward Yaku. He saw his senpai give him a thumbs-up, his expression as happy as ever.

Shibayama let out a breath. The whistle blew and his teammates called out, "One more time, Yamamoto!" _Yes. One more time. I can do this one more time._

 _Let's win and let's go to nationals._

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Here is the last chapter! I was going to break it into two but I'd rather have one long chapter than two short ones. I hope you enjoyed it!

So, wow, angst. It was difficult to write, honestly. I feel like I didn't go deep enough or explored enough but what do you think about it? Reviews are appreciated greatly!

I also have a Tumblr writing side blog called **iwritehaikyuu-things**! As the name implies, I write drabbles for the various characters that are too short to be posted here. It's still new and under heavy construction but there are some stories for viewing. Please check it out if you can!

The next fic to be uploaded will be a Karasuno Valentine's Day story. Please look forward to that!

Thank you for reading and for staying with this fic until the end!

 **Haikyuu! does not belong to me.**


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